


Keep Shining Sunshine

by EstaJay



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, First Meetings, Gen, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), backdated, xover with Growing up Gerudo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-24
Updated: 2019-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-17 17:14:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28977993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EstaJay/pseuds/EstaJay
Summary: Nine Links find themselves in a desert with no clue as to what's going on. One in particular comes face to face with his most dread foe before he became a villain.
Kudos: 11





	Keep Shining Sunshine

**Author's Note:**

> 25/01/2021 - so this was actually my first ever fic for LU and the end to a long writing hiatus but it didn't really go anywhere beyond the first chapter due to me not being familiar with the Links at the time. Posting this here for archiving. Currently working on a rewrite so stay tuned!

Spontaneous teleportation was rare and unprecedented but, at this point, not completely surprising. With all the items Link had collected from his adventures, at least one of them had to be cursed enough to cause his current predicament. Once he isolated the ring,rod or whatever it was he could destroy it - or sell to Ravio. He still owed that shrewd merchant money.

He should count his blessings at least - the middle of a desert was better than the bottom of the ocean. 

After a quick check of his supplies, Link found that he was well equipped for combat but only had enough provisions to last a week at most. Damn - if only whatever brought him here happened a day or two later, he would have been better stocked up. But what’s done is done, no use complaining over it. 

Slipping on some rings for heat resistance and stamina and raising his shield over his head for some shade, Link picked a direction and started walking. Deserts generally had nomads wandering about. If he could find the friendly kind, maybe they could direct him to civilization. If they were the not-so friendly kind, more supplies for him. 

Eventually he did find another living human, except it wasn’t a friendly nomad. It was an idiot who managed to get himself buried in the sand. 

Link sighed at the muffled screams for help. He rustled through his bag until he found a shovel to dig the idiot out. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it - especially if there was a magic bag of holding involved. 

The person he unburied was young Hylian, about a year or two younger than him with a round face and dressed in the traditional green hero's tunic. He probably used to have a hat to match but it was likely lost to the sand.

"Thank you so much!" The kid said. "I thought I was going to die under there."

"Don't worry about it, just be more careful next time." Link said, stowing away his shovel. He was careful not to get any sand in there because if there was one thing his last adventure into the desert had taught him, sand was a bitch to get out of magic bags. 

"But really, thank you again. I'm Link by the way."

So there was more hero homage in the kid than just his clothing. 

"Same."

"What?"

"My name. It's Link as well." He said with a slight smirk.

The other Link's eyes widened. "Really? What a coincidence!"

"Not really. It's a solid name with a good history.” 

Honestly, he was surprised that he hadn’t met more Links. The knight-consort of Zelda the Founder was named Link - and the Fallen Hero was also a Link. He had heard many stories and folktales throughout his travels and without fail, the hero was always named Link. 

"Yeah, my parents actually named me after the Hero of Legend." The other Link said. 

That was a new one. "You mean the one who founded Hyrule with Zelda the First?" That Link had been called the Chosen Hero and the Hero of the Sky, maybe there was another regional epithet he hadn't heard of. 

"No, not that one. The one who defeated Ganon the King of Darkness in the Dark World and stopped his witch-mothers from reviving him!"

Wait.

"He fought with an enchanted golden sword and owned every item in existence!"

He couldn't possibly mean...

"You know, the one who woke the Great Fish!"

"Here. For protection." Link said, tossing a couple rings at the kid. He strode forward, careful to keep his back to him. "We'd better get moving, find some sort of civilization before the sun gets too high."

"You mean I can...of course! Right away!" And he heard the kid scramble behind him. 

Apparently Link wasn't only spatially displaced but temporally as well. 

...but the Hero of Legend wasn't the worst thing to be remembered as. 

* * *

The terrain on the surface was so different compared to Skyloft. For one, it was so diverse with a variety of habitats each with their own dangers. Zelda had been wise in choosing the future location of Hyrule, a fertile land with stable seasons. Link couldn’t imagine what life would be like if they had chosen to settle in a desert.

Link didn’t know how he had arrived in the desert or why he was there. One moment he was whittling wood by a stream, the next he was surrounded by sand. But the goddesses worked in mysterious ways and it was his duty, as their Chosen Hero, to carry out their will to the best of his ability. 

He wasn’t completely vulnerable to the elements. Link had the sailcloth that Zelda made for him which could shield him from the winds and sand, and he had several weeks worth of supplies. Besides, he had been in a desert before.

But after several hours of treading through the endless sea of sand and no divine sign or even living being, Link’s faith was beginning to falter. The sun was still high and just as hot as it had first been when he had found himself in the desert despite the time that had passed. Maybe this was his test? To see if he could survive this harshness, to see if he was worthy of the hand of a goddess incarnate. 

Then something caught his eye, a flash of green amidst the golden sand. Vegetation possibly? Approaching the green, Link saw that it was a - a person! A collapsed person!

Link rushed towards the prone figure.With such a small body it had to be a child!

Link bent down, fumbling with his waterskin to bring it to the person’s lips. It took several nudges but after feeling moisture on their lips, they began to drink greedily. 

“Careful. Pace yourself friend.” Link said. “There’s plenty of water to spare.” 

“The others…” The person croaked. His voice was deep, so not a child but simply small. “Is there - they’re…”

“There’s no one else here, friend.” 

The person’s eyes flew wide open in panic. “No! There has to be! We...we were together - the four of us, we can’t...can’t-”

“Relax friend, please. You’re still in a weakened state.” Link brought the person closer to his chest, trying to ease his tension by rubbing circles in his back.

“The four...sword. My sword - where, where is it?”

Link spied the sheathed weapon just an arm’s reach away. The person desperately clung to the sword when he gave it to him, clutching it like a lifeline. He calmed significantly, his eyes drooping back into unconsciousness. 

Link took this opportunity to maneuver the smaller man onto his back.

“Stay calm, friend.” Link said. “We’ll find your companions - or find some way to contact them. By the way, my name is Link. What’s yours?”

The person gave a soft chuckle. “Funny. That’s my name as well.” 

* * *

This was all Ganondorf’s fault. 

The desert, the monster, the injured kid - one way or another, Link knew that the villain was somehow behind it all. 

“Hold still.” Link said to the squirming child in green before him. 

The child huffed but actually stilled long enough for Link to tend to his wounds. “You don’t have to treat me like a kid, y’know. I could’ve handled that monster by myself.”

“Sure you could.” Link said, trying not to come off as condescending. “But there was no way I would let anyone, man, woman or child, fight alone.”

He had no doubt in the child’s abilities. It was the green garbe, the fire in his eyes and the skill of his combat. This boy was one of his predecessors, a Hero of Hyrule. However, it wasn’t the same young predecessor he had fought alongside in the past. Young Link would have recognised him by now or at least could recall that trans-time-space battle. Link’s heart ached that there was another child forced into a harsh destiny so soon. 

“My name’s Link. Link of Outset Island. What’s yours?”

“It’s Link as well but you can call me Warrior.” He may have been a military captain but first and foremost it was his part in the coalition of fighters, the Hyrule Warriors, that defined him. 

The boy grinned. “You’ve got a nickname picked out already?”

Link smiled back. “I’ve met many Links.”

“Yeah, me too. Nearly every other kid on the island was named Link, even some of the girls! Everyone just called Aryll’s brother.”

“Is that what you want me to call you?” Link said cheekily.

The boy laughed. “No way! You haven’t even met Aryll!” He paused for a moment, thinking of his name, and his eyes brightened and smile widened when the thought came to him. “Wind. Call me Wind.” 

“A good name. Well then Wind, you’re all patched up. Be careful with your bandages though.”

“I know, I know. I know how to take care of injuries.” Wind said, hopping to his feet. “So what are we going to do now?”

“Good question.” None of the landforms look familiar so this definitely wasn’t his Hyrule. “Do you recognise anything?”

“It’s all islands and water where I’m from.” Wind scoffed. “This is the first time I’ve ever  _ seen  _ a desert.”

“So then - the first course of business is to find some locals. They’ll know where we are and then we can go from there.” And they would have to do so fast. Between the two of them, there was enough food to last three days if they were lucky - after that…

“I know what to do!” Wind said enthusiastically, pulling a silver baton from his bag. “Hold on tight.”

Wind waved the wand in four precise motions - down, right, left and up. With that final upbeat, Link discovered why exactly his predecessor chose the name Wind as they were swept up in a cyclone. 

* * *

He was alone. Again.

Isolated. Again. 

Disoriented and unsure and -

Quiet. 

It was quiet. 

There was no voice in his head telling him what to do. 

It was just him and the desert winds. 

He was Link.

Just Link.

Not a knight of Hyrule, not the Princess’s guard -

Just Link.

He remembered that.

He wouldn’t forget that. Not again. 

The sun was hot. 

His stomach grumbled. 

He flicked his hood over his head. 

He strung his bow and notched an arrow. 

Link would find out what happened. 

But first, food. 

* * *

Wolves were suited for colder climates, why else would they have such thick fur? A lone wolf in the desert was comically out of place: paws sinking into the sand, fur trapping in heat and the constant risk of being shot. However a wolf fared much better in the deserted than an unprepared Hylian. 

Link also found it easier to relax as a wolf. Higher thinking such as ‘how am I suddenly in the middle of a fucking desert?!’ was beyond a wolf’s concerns. Heck, they were things that a simple farmhand shouldn’t have to deal with. Sadly, Link was also a hero which came with a whole new set of responsibilities and worries and - yeah, he was going to be a wolf for now. 

Lizards and snakes weren’t the tastiest thing ever and eating them raw didn’t help the flavour but wolves couldn’t be picky in the middle of the desert. Even if his human mind was grumbling. 

Then, he smelled something. Smoke, fire and cooked meat. 

He salivated at the thought of cooked food but cooked food generally meant people who wouldn’t appreciate said food being stolen.

But wolves could be stealthy. Even when as oddly placed as in a desert, he could be stealthy. 

Link found a lone traveller in a Hylian travel cloak by a fireplace surrounded by enough wild game to feed at least a dozen-so people. The human part raged at the excess, especially considering the traveller didn’t seem to have any companions. The wolf grinned that a bird or fox wouldn’t be missed. 

The traveller perked up and turned directly towards him.

Shit.

But the traveller didn’t reach for his bow. Instead, he pulled a morsel that smelled of perfectly cooked and seasoned rabbit from the fire. The traveller slowly approached Link, body low but open and hand with the lovely piece of meat outstretched. 

Link eagerly gobbled up the offered meal, careful to mind the traveller’s hand. The traveller’s other hand came around to gently pat his collar. 

“You seemed awfully displaced wolfie.” The traveller’s voice was soft and raspy, probably from disuse. “Want to stick with me for a bit? I could use the company.”

Link gave a bright bark and settled down by the fire.

“Aren’t you an eager one?” The traveller grinned, resuming his seat by the fire. “It probably doesn’t matter but my name’s Link.” 

* * *

Link groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. 

He remembered making his way home after fulfilling the queen’s request and then suddenly being in a desert. He remembered fainting, full plate armour never agreed with the desert heat. 

He wasn’t dead, for one. He was in a tent of somesort. Some pitying soul must have found him.

“He’s waking up!”

“Shh...quiet, he needs his rest…”

Link sat up and found three children crowding the foot of his cot. Two young Gerudos and - and a little blond Hylian that looked too  _ familiar  _ for comfort. 

Farore, Nayru and Din above - what had he done to offend them so? Wasn’t he old enough to be spared the time-space travelling quests?

“Hello there.” Link said, sitting up. 

“Hi-”

“What were you in the desert?!” One of the Gerudo children interjected, cutting off the other. “And why were you dressed like that?! That’s a stupid thing to do, even for a dumb Hylian and -mmfrtf!”

“That’s enough from you.” A Gerudo said, removing her hand from the child’s mouth. “Now outside, the lot of you. You can interrogate our guest later.”

The children scurried outside but the Hylian paused while partially through the tent flap, locking eyes with Link and searching his face for something. 

“That includes you too, Link. Out you go.”

Link felt his throat tighten as the younger Link disappeared with his friends. 

“So his name is Link, eh?” He said as casually as he could. “A very traditional Hylian name for a Gerudo foster.”

The Gerudo turned to him sharply. “How would you know?”

“Those forehead jewels aren’t given lightly. He’s passed your trials and you’ve accepted him as your own.” Nabooru had always been eager to impart her culture whenever he visited Gerudo Town - especially when he came through a window with several guards on his tail.

“Who are you?” The Gerudo demanded, pulling herself up to her full height.

“Link of Lonlon Ranch.” He answered, straightening his posture to meet her eyes. “It’s a _ very  _ traditional name.”

“You arrived rather... _ overdressed  _ to be a simple rancher.” The Gerudo said but there was obviously a different statement in her mind. 

Link shrugged. “I’ve always been a bit of an adventurer.”

“And what of your family?” 

Ah, so she had seen his ring. “My wife understands my wanderlust. Her only request is that I write regularly and come back home in one piece.”

“And children?”

Link couldn’t stop his gaze from drifting to the tent flap. “None - not that it stops my father-in-law’s badgering.” he joked. 

However, the Gerudo wasn’t the slightest bit amused. “You were foolish to have let yourself wander so far, Link of Lonlon Ranch, but we are not a cruel people. You are free to stay until you have regained your health. After that, it will be up for the Dragmire to decide.” 

And just as abruptly as she had arrived, the Gerudo left. 

Link considered flopping back down into the cot and resting like the Gerudo expected him to but he felt too energized to remain on bedrest. Besides he was curious. Nabooru had told him about the Gerudo’s nomadic roots and he wondered how their lives differed from settled counterparts. The Gerudo never said he couldn’t leave the tent. And those children - there was no doubt that were going to try and sneak back in. 

Link found his bag, armour and sword nearby. They had a monumental amount of trust or great confidence in their skill if they were willing to leave him armed. He packed his loose items into his bag and slung it over his shoulder as well as latching a dagger to his belt, exposed but easily accessible. The Gerudo may seem to be friendly now but he had been in too many situations where hospitality turned into hostility. As a warrior tribe, the Gerudo would also take offence if he was wandering about unarmed. 

Link had barely stepped out of the tent when he spied the three children trying to hide behind a pot. 

“You can come out now.” Link called. 

The children scrambled towards him, the two Gerudo children in front with the young Link slightly behind them. Was he his descendant? Predecessor? Something else entirely? If past experience was anything to go by, the boy was the reason why he was here. That or Ganon wrecking havoc. It was likely both and Link would gladly deal with the monster if that meant preserving some of the child’s innocence. 

His young counterpart was the first to speak this time. “Your name’s Link too.” 

“Yes and so I’ve heard yours is as well.” Link smiled, crouching down to meet them at eye level. “Though I haven’t heard what your friends’ names are.”

“I’m Sika!” The loudest and tallest of the children declared, her short hair bobbing as she raised herself taller in an attempt to tower over Link’s crouched form. “And  _ you  _ better not cause any trouble or I’ll beat you to a pulp!”

“I’ll be on my best behaviour.” Link said.

The other Gerudo child didn’t share her companion’s assertiveness. “My name is Vridi.” She said meekly.

“A pleasure to meet you, all of you. You all seem to be good friends.”

“We grew up together.” the younger Link said. “Sika’s my sister and Vridi’s my  _ brother.” _

Ah, his mistake then.    
“Um...if you don’t mind me asking sir, but - what were you doing in the desert?” Vridi said, fumbling with his glasses. 

“I got lost.” Link said. 

The children stared at him in disbelief. 

“Lost?! How do you ‘get lost’ in the middle of the desert?!” Sika exclaimed. 

“As easy as blinking an eye.” Link said. “One moment you’re somewhere familiar and the next you’re elsewhere.”

“No way! You’re lying!”

“It’s the curse of a traveller. Sometimes you end up on the wrong path and other times you get ambushed by monsters.”

Sika huffed. “I doubt you’d even be able to beat a cucco, let alone survive a monster attack.”

“Don’t underestimate cuccos, young lady. I lost an eye to one of those birds.” He turned his face to the left, showing off the scar running over his right eye. 

“Really?” the younger Link giggled.

Link nodded. Very rarely did he tell the truth about his eye - it was far from his proudest moment. “They’re  _ very  _ protective of their kind. Offend one and the whole flock will attack you. It was the first and last time my wife ever left me alone to do farmwork.”

Then the children fell silent.  __

“Is something the matter?”

“...You’re not here to take Link away, are you?” Vridi asked softly.

“Why would I do that?”

“You’re his father aren’t you? His  _ real  _ father.” Sika accused. “You look just like him. Why else would a Hylian be wandering the desert by himself? You’re going to take him away and raise on a farm with cuccos...”

Tears welled on the girl’s face. Her brother wasn’t faring much better with his head bowed and glasses fogged up. 

The younger Link glared at him. Eyes locked in silent defiance, daring him to confirm their suspicions. The boy looked scarily identical to him at that age - but he was certain he hadn’t fathered any children with his wife or otherwise and he distinctly remembered growing up Kokiri, not Gerudo. 

“There seems to be a misunderstanding here.” Link said. “Your Link is just as much as a Gerudo as either of you and no one, not me or any other person, has the right to take you away from your family.”

Vridi smiled and began wiping away his tears while Sika puffed her chest, trying to look as if she had never faltered despite the wet streaks on her face. The younger Link wasn’t quite smiling but his eyes danced with relief and gratefulness. 

Link would have been smiling with them but the figure approaching wiped it all away. 

_ No. _

Towering twice as tall as any Hylian and thrice as broad, large hands that could easily crush skulls and hair as red as flames -

_ “Ganondorf.” _

-and charging straight at the children. 

Link’s body moved before his mind could process what was going on. 

Ganondorf’s hand had been sliced by Link’s dagger, too shallow to cause any harm but it was enough to recoil his foe, allowing Link to stand between him and the children. 

“What’s going on here?!” Ganondorf bellowed, that same roaring voice that still haunted Link to this day. 

“Run. Get to safety. Find others.” Link’s words were short and clipped but he had to remain calm. He was older, wiser and stronger than he had been when he first faced Ganondorf. He should be able hold him off long enough-

“Dad!” The young Link cried to - Ganondorf?

Wha -

Link barely had time to parry the sword that came down on him. 

“How dare you strike our Dragmire, Hylian!” the attacking Gerudo yelled.

And he knew that face on the other end of the blade.

“Nabooru?”

Link saw her eyes widen at her name.

Then a hit came from behind and Link blacked out. 

* * *

Ganondorf tucked his son into the covers. Link’s eyes drooped but he was stubbornly trying to stay awake rather than let the exhaustion set in. 

They were still shaken by the mysterious Hylian. The wound he had inflicted was easily bandaged up and he had been quickly subdued but...that wasn’t just a random attack of aggression. He saw Ganondorf  _ specifically  _ as a threat - a threat to his own children for some damn reason. 

“Dad?” 

“Yes?”   
“You’re...you’re not going to let him take me away, right?”   
“Of course. I would die before I would let anyone take you away from us.” Yet he couldn’t suppress the sneaking suspicion that the Hylian had been sent to steal his son away as he had with their princess. “Sleep now, it’s been a long day.”

“G’night Dad, love you…”

“I love you too, my little sunshine.”   
Ganondorf pressed a final kiss to Link’s forehead as he drifted off to sleep. There was still a long night ahead for him. 

He exited the tent to find Nabooru waiting for him. 

“Sika and Vridi have been settled with their mothers - as has your kidnapped princess.” There was a distinct tone of displeasure in her voice. If there hadn’t been more pressing matters, she definitely would be scolding him for his impulsiveness. 

“What do we know about the Hylian?” Ganondorf asked. 

“His name is Link of Lon Lon Ranch. He claims to be a lost adventurer.”

Ganondorf scoffed. “You saw how he moved, that was a trained fighter.” 

“I’m simply relaying what he told Aveil. The scouting party had found him in full plate armour in the middle of the desert - any later and the sun would have cooked him alive.”

“Do you think Daphnes sent him?”   
“No. He was courteous to Aveil’s questioning and even humoured the children. Daphnes wouldn’t send someone like that to retrieve his daughter. He will be much  _ much  _ more vicious.”

Ganondorf had seen the letter. He knew it was only a matter of time before the Hylian king retaliated. They were lucky that nothing had happened while he had been at Death Mountain. 

“Do  _ you  _ know who he is?”

Nabooru stiffened. “What?”

“He knew your name.”

“I’ve never seen that Hylian before.” She answered stiffly. 

Ganondorf bit back a retort. There was definitely something more about the Hylian that Nabooru wasn’t telling him, something definitely related to those sages and the Sheikah - but he trusted her to tell him if it was important. 

The Hylian was held in a tent on the opposite side of camp. The guards gave them a curt nod as they entered and - 

The Hylian was lounging against the centre tentpole, coiling up the rope that had been used to bind him. 

" _ Sav'saaba  _ Ganondorf Dragmire, Nabooru." He greeted with a cocky smirk -  _ Link’s  _ cocky smirk. 

Suddenly, the fears that this may be his son’s birth father didn’t seem so fanciful.

* * *

It was far from the first time Link had been held captive by the Gerudo. Once he had regained consciousness it was simply a matter of a twist here and knot there to unbound himself. He was lucky that he hadn’t been thrown into a sandpit this time.

But he didn’t leave the tent. 

There would certainly be guards posted outside but that was nothing he couldn’t sneak past and given how similar the camp’s layout was to Gerudo Fortress, finding his confiscated belongings would be an easy task. After that, however, would be an endless expanse of sand and heat that he was ill-prepared for. 

No, Link was going to sit here and  _ think things through.  _

The Gerudo were no longer nomadic in his time, having settled in places such as Gerudo Fortress and Gerudo Town near bazaars and trading outposts - so he was somewhere in the past. It wasn’t too distant - young Sika bore a striking resemblance to that Gerudo guard who very much hated him no matter what he did. Nabooru was here and still by Ganondorf side and -

_ ‘You remind me of a boy I once knew…’ _

There was a rustle of cloth behind him and Link saw a short figure in green trying, and failing, to discreetly enter the tent.

“Princess Zelda?”

The child froze then turned to him. “My father sent you, didn’t he?” the child mumbled, shoulders dropping. “They said they found another Hylian and Link and the others are convinced that you’re here for him but-”

“Or is it Sheik?”   
The child’s eyes widened as he gave Link another look over. “Oh Hylia _. _ ”

And that confirmed it. Before him dressed in green was a ten-year-old version of his queen.


End file.
